> From: David Kilpatrick <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Organization: Icon Publications Ltd > Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Date: Sat, 21 Oct 2006 20:22:39 +0100 > To: "Roger E. Blumberg" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: Re: [CITTERN] Re: Small Portuguese Guitarra ca. 1890 > > Roger E. Blumberg wrote:
>>> From: ron fernandez <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >>> Date: Sat, 21 Oct 2006 09:54:17 -0700 >>> To: [email protected] >>> Subject: [CITTERN] Small Portuguese Guitarra ca. 1890 >>> >>> Greetings, >>> >>> I have posted photos on my website of a small Portuguese guitarra I own >>> (circa 1890) made in Lisbon by João Miguel Andrade and imported into >>> England by Alban Voigt who published an English language method for >>> playing the Portuguese guitarra. >>> >>> Have a look at this instrument. It is probably relevant to the >>> discussion of mandolins. >>> >>> It is made of Brazilian Rosewood, spruce and ebony. I re-repaired cracks >>> and French polished the instrument. I made a nearly identical new bridge >>> based on the original one which was slightly cracked. The tuners are >>> interesting because they can be turned by hand or by a special wrench. >>> >>> By the new year I will post photos of other Portuguese guitarras I have >>> collected. >>> >>> The location for the photos is: >>> http://fernandezmusic.com/Andrade_Guitarra.html >>> >>> Regards, >>> >>> Ron Fernández >> Hi Ron; >> >> I confess I know nothing of these particular instruments, but if someone >> were to tell me that instrument was made in the 1940s or 50s (or even 60's >> for that matter) I'd believe it. Are you sure it's 1890s? That binding looks >> suspiciously white among other things. That was the first thing I noticed, >> but the more I look at all it's particulars the more I wonder. Any red flags >> occur to you'all? I'd just never in the world guess this to be 1890, but I'm >> perfectly willing to learn new things. > The instrument Ron shows has a pin-plate string fixing, either without a > plate into the wood of the rear, or with a reinforcement. This is a 19th > century thing, and earlier. By the 20th century, tailpieces were being > used. The design definitely midway between a modern guitarra and an > English guittar and also has aspects of Bohm-type waldzither (the exact > shape of the fanhead top and the amount of wood on either side, the way > it is fixed in). It also appears to have less 'tension' in building the > body than a modern guitarra - they really are bent into shape under > considerable force, even having curvature on the tops without carving, > which is far more than a flat-top mandolin or a modern guitar. John > Pearse has said that he bought one to repair, and it almost flew apart > when the glue was heated. This is different from a waldzither-type > assembly, which is about as stable as a modern guitar when dismantled. > The 1890 example looks much more like this, than a modern guitarra. > > David > Hi David; The pin-plate mechanism is the only thing about the instrument that looks old or at least "inspired" by an old pattern, to me. Everything else feels too modern. There's just too many tell-tale "somethings" about it -- or else my radar really just took a hike south! ;-) here's one from the 40's, and the one Ron shows looks even newer than this one (to me). This one does have a tail piece though. http://www.insightsconsulting.biz/Instruments/059-x.jpg Portuguese guitarra, "Lisboa" type with scroll head, 12 wire strings. Currently set up for 4-courses of triple strings like a bandolim, but could be reconfigured for six double-strings. Lisbon, ca. 1940. main page http://www.insightsconsulting.biz/Instruments/musicoll.htm some cool instruments there I honestly don't know for sure, I'm just sayin, and still wondering . . . Thanks Roger To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
